How should I ask for letters of rec to apply for scholarship?

Paying for College
1

<p>I have to ask in order to apply for scholarship for study abroad.
But, all 3 of the teachers I have now have huge classes (100+ students), and they don’t personally know me. Is it okay to ask a teacher even though they barely know you, and convince them why the should write it for you? Or I might ask my TA for my class this quarter.
You’re supposed to ask someone who knows you well, right? But when I don’t have close connections to any of the teachers at my college, what’s the best thing to do?</p>

<p>Do people usually have a close connection to the people they ask letters of rec from?</p>

2

<p>What guidelines or requirements does the scholarship list for LORs? If the scholarship requires professors for the LOR then a TA just won’t do. However, if the guidelines say “instructor,” then asking your TA will be fine. Another possibility would be for the TA to write the letter and the class’s professor to sign it–it’s a pretty common practice.</p>

<p>That still leaves the other letters. It’s OK to ask a prof who teaches a big class. You’d be surprised at how well some large class instructors know their students. But you will want to jog his/her memory of just who you are. When you ask, mention which class(es) you taken with him/her. Also prepare an informal vita/resume about yourself to give to the professor if he/she agree to be your reference. This will help them personalize the letter. Writing LORs for students is part of a prof’s job so don’t feel awkward about asking. </p>

<p>When choosing who to ask, think about which classes you most actively participated in (asked questions, participated in class discussions, went to prof’s office hours, exchanged emails regarding projects, etc). Letter writers don’t have to know you well, but they do need to have a clue who you are. </p>

<p>Also it’s OK to ask someone whose class you took in the past—last semester, even last year–if you think they might remember you.</p>

3

<p>this is what I’ve suggested to my kids when they need a LOR…</p>

<p>First send an email asking if you can stop by and discuss getting the LOR. Suggest a few possible times that might work for the prof/teacher and for you. Let him/her pick the time.</p>

<p>In the body of the email include a brief resume about yourself…not a big one that requires a bunch of reading, but 4 or 5 important highlights briefly written in bullet form. </p>

<p>If you want, you can also attach a full resume.</p>

<p>Some profs like to have a couple of weeks notice, so don’t wait til the last minute. And I’ve heard that some profs will actually ask you to write up a paragraph or two, email it to them, then the prof “fine tunes” it, and sends it in. </p>

<p>be sure to provide whatever the means for sending in the LOR…electronic instructions, links, mailing addresses, name of the recipient, etc. </p>

<p>Important! Include any deadlines!!!</p>

<p>When the prof responds with a time, send a response with thanks.</p>

<p>When you show up, have a copy of your resume in hand to give to him/her.</p>

<p>After the LOR is sent, send a thank-you.</p>

<p>If you later get the scholarship (or whatever), send another email mentioning the achievement and again thanking the prof for the assistance.</p>